It has been months since the last Loch Ness Monster sighting and many including Gary Campbell the keeper of the Official Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register have been somewhat concerned.

But we finally have the first 2017 Loch Ness Monster sighting according to Campbell ending the months of uncertainty as to the elusive cryptids absence. A 28-year-old tourist from Manchester, England named Hayley Johnson reported seeing a strange, dark shape near dusk in Urquhart Bay according to a report from The Sun. This area is the loch has been the location for many Nessie sightings over the years. Johnson admitted that she is a skeptical person and she couldn’t believe her eye’s.

(Picture: Hayley Johnson)

Johnson was able to take a photo of the what she and many others believe is the famous lake monster. The potential Loch Ness Monster photo shows what could be the neck and head of the creature although because of the distance it lacks the detail needed to be certain. According to Campbell the summer time usually produces more sightings of Nessie than any other time of year in part because more people are around the loch and that there are much longer daylight hours with better weather. Even though 2017 got off to a slow start last year was a great year for Nessie sightings with eight official sightings reported and documented according to Campbell.

Could this new Loch Ness Monster picture be proof that the lake monster exist? Check it out and you can decide for yourself whether or not this is actual Loch Ness Monster evidence and a legit Loch Ness Monster sighting 2017. We certainly expect more 2017 Loch Ness Monster sightings to be on the way and perhaps this is the year that the concrete evidence needed to prove the creature’s existence is discovered. Okay, maybe not but we can certainly be hopeful!

According to Gary Campbell the keeper of the Official Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register it has been a very good year for Loch Ness Monster sightings.

Campbell confirmed that Nessie sightings are at their highest levels since the year 2000. There have been seven documented sightings of the elusive lake monster so far this year and for the first time, two of these sightings occurred on the same day by different witnesses at different locations on the loch. Campbell said in an interview “It means that there are more people than ever before looking for Nessie – which would explain the rise in sightings.” Along with 2016 Loch Ness Monster reports were some interesting pieces of possible evidence including some intriguing Loch Ness Monster pictures.

“Ian Campbell Loch Ness Monster Picture”

Campbell believes the rise in sightings of the elusive cryptid can also be attributed to the surge in smartphone and webcam usage. Two of the seven 2016 Loch Ness Monster sightings were via webcam one of which was reported by a viewer from the United States. The most recent Nessie sighting was on August 21 when a local government worker named Ian Campbell spotted two creatures measuring over 30ft near the shore of Loch Ness while cycling. The Campbell sighting produced one of the more interesting Loch Ness Monster pictures this year. On that same day another report was made by a man named Mr. Smith who reported seeing similar black shapes moving in the water near Urquhart Castle.

As the year comes to a close perhaps there is still time for Nessie to make one more appearance. Maybe the year will end with lake monster sightings not only from Loch Ness but elsewhere as well. Hopefully, this rise in sightings will carry over into next year strengthening the theory that the Loch Ness Monster is still alive and well!

The Loch Ness Monster hideaway may have been located in the depths of the loch as new crevices have been found making it deeper than previously known.

The loch has long been thought to be 813 feet deep at its deepest point, but this new crevice is 77 feet deeper than previous records. This new location makes the deepest part of the Loch Ness now 889 feet deep according to state of the art sonar equipment. It has long been believed by many that underwater caves existed in the loch and were the hiding places of the elusive cryptid said to inhabit its waters. This new location as being named “Keiths Abyss” by locals in reference to its finder Keith Stewart and many wonder if this could really be a Loch Ness Monster hideaway.

Stewart made his way around the worlds open seas for years using sonar equipment and says he decided to do something more sedate. Last March he became a captain for Jacobite Cruises, which does sight seeing tours down the Loch from Inverness. He says he was not a believer in Nessie beforehand, but two weeks ago, he came across a sonar image of what looked to be a long object with a hump lying on the bottom of the loch. He returned later and scanned the same location and it was no longer there. Many believe this could very well be a 2016 Loch Ness Monster sonar image or hit and Stewart admits it intrigued him. Could this actually be the first at least round about 2016 Loch Ness Monster sighting?

“Keith Stewart” (Photo by Peter Jolly Northpix)

He then found a dark shape about halfway between the Clansman Hotel and Drumnadrochit which ended up being the new crevice or trench. It is still unclear as to how long the trench is but the 3d equipment has verified its depth. Most sonar searches of the loch have traditionally been done in the middle of the loch but this location is only a few hundred yards offshore. This may be proof of local legends which claim there were underwater caves that connected Loch Ness to other lochs in the area and even the waters of the east and west coast. This new discovery is fueling new theories that this trench or perhaps even other yet undiscovered trenches could be home to Nessie or even a family of lake monsters and may explain why they are rarely seen.

Another theory being debated is that the trench could of been opened up by an earthquake. Loch Ness is part of an earthquake fault line that runs from Norway to Canada. Back in 2013 a 2.4 magnitude earthquake hit the loch which happened to be the same time that Nessie disappeared for an entire year. Perhaps the earthquake opened up this new trench, giving the lake monster(s) a new place to hide. Gary Campbell the president of the Loch Ness Monster Fan Club and the Registrar of Sightings said this discovery adds a whole new dimension to the search for the creature. Searches for the creature one of the most well known of the cryptids has mainly been in the middle of the loch and Urquhart Bay according to Campbell.

This finding will surely lead to more research into the location as well as the loch as a whole. This new research which is likely to include submarines and more state of the art sonar equipment may turn out to be another extremely interesting chapter in the legend of the Loch Ness Monster. Maybe this will even lead to new Loch Ness Monster sightings or even better Loch Ness Monster evidence.

Loch Ness Monster sightings had been on a steady decline over the last few years, but sightings of the famous cryptid have bounced back over the past year.

According to the Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register the reported sightings of Nessie reached their highest level for more than a decade this year. The keeper of the register Gary Campbell said this was a very active and even a vintage year for Nessie sightings and reports. According to Campbell the register accepted five sightings in 2015 which is the highest total in the last 13 years. There were many more alleged sightings of the lake monster but the majority of the reports did not get added to the register because they could be explained says, Campbell.

“Recent Loch Ness Monster sightings“

The lack of sightings and reports over the last couple of years, including no reported sightings in 2013 had many people questioning the lake monster mystery and many wondering if Nessie was dead. But this years multiple bona fide sightings from Loch Ness of the lake monster have brought life back into the monster mystery. Among the sightings logged by the register was on by an American tourist named Crystal Ardito back in July. She claimed to have seen what she called a “gray thing” in the waters of the Loch for a few second and was able to get a possible Nessie photo.

Then in August of this year a couple from Yorkshire who were staying at the Loch Ness Holiday Park had a Loch Ness Monster sighting. According to the couple they saw a mass moving in an undulating fashion in the loch and was able to get a photo of it as well. There were also five other people who reported seeing this sighting, which lasted approx five minutes. The latest sighting of the Loch Ness Monster was in September and reported by a local man named Conor McKenna according to the register. He claims to have seen a 15-20ft long dark colored object in the waters of the loch about 250 yards from shore about a mile south of Urquhart Castle. He says he had a clear look at it for about six seconds before it submerged leaving behind a small wave.

These latest Loch Ness Monster sightings may at least to some extent revive the debate between skeptics and believers as to the existence of the most famous lake monster in the world. Any it leaves many to wonder of Loch Ness Monster sightings 2016 will be as plentiful and could it be the year we actually get proof of the creature!

Loch Ness Monster sightings have been steadily decreasing over the years and it has led many to wonder if Nessie still inhabits the waters of the Loch or has the mysterious lake monster died.

Steve Feltham is perhaps the most well known Nessie hunter in the world spending the last 24 years in search of the elusive cryptid has his own “Nessie no more” theory. Feltham after a long journey says he has come to a realization and now believes the Loch Ness Monster is likely nothing more than a Wels catfish.

According to Feltham this would explain the sightings of Nessie going all the way back to the 1930’s. The theory is based on the catfish being introduced into the loch by Victorians for sport and as the fish began to reach maturity sightings of the Loch Ness Monster started being reported. The possible existence of the creature was brought to everyone’s attention back in 1933.

There would of been a viable breeding population of the catfish which has been known to grow to sizes of up to 13 feet long in the loch over several years. The Wels catfish is scaleless fresh and brackish water species and its color, size, and long curved back could explain some of the sightings of Nessie over the years. The veteran Nessie hunter also believes the decreasing number of sightings can also be explained by the catfish population of the loch declining.

“Wels Catfish“

The aggressive species are known to attack humans and even eat other catfish as part of their diet and may have eaten enough of their own breeding females over time to lead to their lowering numbers. Many Nessie believers and researchers don’t agree and point to many aspects of sightings and reports as to why its unlikely that more than a few previous sightings could be explained by this theory. The lake monster of Loch Ness is still believed by many to be a prehistoric animal called a Plesiosaur.

So far there have only been three official 2015 Loch Ness Monster sightings none of which were very detailed or provided any video or photo evidence only eyewitness accounts. As the number of sightings and reports continue to decrease year by year the Feltham theory seems to become more plausible to many Cryptozoology enthusiasts. Although there is still plenty of information which points to the creature being something else and to keep the mysteries of Loch Ness alive along with the hopes that we will one day discover a yet unknown cryptid there.